Eating disorders affect all types of people. Various factors may contribute to eating disorders such as genetic links, environmental and social pressures, and career or cultural factors. The following behaviors are cause for concern, as they could be potential warning signs of eating disordered behavior:
- persistent denial of hunger
- refusal to eat or restriction of calories
- binge eating
- purging through forced vomiting
- overuse/abuse of laxatives
- low body image / constant fixation on weight
- excessive exercise in order to burn calories
- food rituals involving a fear of getting fat
- high levels of perfectionism, with low self regard
Eating disorders are often accompanied by attempts to cope with emotional distress and states of overwhelm by controlling or consuming food. Early diagnosis and treatment is important in order to establish emotional stability and address contributing factors. Restricting calories, binge eating, and/or purging can be the cause of serious physical health problems.
Treatment of eating disorders includes addressing co-occurring disorders such as anxiety, depression, OCD, and substance abuse. In most cases, the family is involved in treatment so that the individual’s support system can change in order to support more healthy behaviors and interactions. We work with males and females of all ages at various stages of severity including aftercare from residential treatment and those transitioning from Partial Hospitalization Programs.